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This week, AbbVie announced it would buy Botox-maker Allergan for $63 billion. AbbVie's CEO told Meg Tirrell it looked at other targets, so we'll keep our eyes open. It's been a big year for IPOs, with Adaptive Biotechnologies, BridgeBio and Change Healthcare all making their public debuts this week. San Francisco, home of e-cigarette giant Juul, became the first city to ban e-cigarettes. I have more on that and the company's reaction. The pressure's on for insurers and providers – the Trump administration unveiled its price transparency plan. And Pfizer introduced its newest board member, whose resume seems to be evergrowing.
(Are there any stories we should be chasing? Email tips, ideas, suggestions to CNBC Health Editor Dawn Kopecki at dawn.kopecki@nbcuni.com.)
| | AbbVie's $63 billion Allergan deal: more to come? | Investors didn't love AbbVie's takeout of Allergan, but they still hope it signals more M&A. Following Bristol-Myers' $74 billion purchase of Celgene, the deal adds to a trend of buyouts of stagnating biopharma giants. So will we see more? Maybe, and Biogen — following its major Alzheimer's setback this year — is at the top of suggested target lists. AbbVie CEO Rick Gonzalez told us he did look at other targets before approaching Allergan.
-Meg Tirrell | | | | Trump's push for price transparency | President Donald Trump issued an executive order this week designed to pressure insurers, doctors and other health-care providers to disclose more information about their prices. Trump said his order is the "opposite" of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, by giving "much better pricing." But critics in the industry say it could actually cause prices to rise if businesses learn their competitors are receiving greater discounts from insurers.
-Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | | | | Gottlieb joins Pfizer's board | Scott Gottlieb has another gig. The former FDA commissioner will join Pfizer's board of directors, the company announced this week. Add that to the growing list of jobs he's taken since stepping down from the agency in April, including as a fellow at a think tank and a special partner at a venture capital firm.
-Angelica LaVito | | | | Strong start for health-care IPOs | It's been a big week and a big year for health-care IPOs. The debut of Adaptive Biotechnologies, BridgeBio and Change Healthcare capped a strong pipeline of more than three dozen companies going public in the first half of this year. And in an uncertain market for health-care investors, health-care IPOs are shaping up to be a port in the storm in the second half of 2019.
-Bertha Coombs | | | | San Francisco bans e-cigarettes | San Francisco, home of market leading e-cigarette company Juul, banned the sale of e-cigarettes this week. Juul says the ordinance will turn adults back to cigarettes and that it plans to fight the measure on the ballot. But supporters say this will keep teens safe amid what regulators are calling a teen vaping "epidemic."
-Angelica LaVito | | | | Big week for diabetes tech start-ups | Livongo, a start-up that sells diabetes services to employers and health plans, announced this week that it is integrated with Fitbit, Apple and Samsung's smartwatches. The idea is to make it easier for people to get "health nudges," which include advice and recommendations. The company is rumored to file for its initial public offering this summer.
Meanwhile, Omada Health raised $73 million more at an approximately $600 million valuation, as it looks to expand beyond diabetes to other chronic conditions. And One Drop said it was the only diabetes-related product for sale in the Apple retail store.
-Christina Farr | |
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